In general, an articulator is a device that measures the state of occlusion of teeth and gums, and is used in the fabrication and testing of dentures, crowns, orthodontic appliances and the like. The articulator mechanically simulates the movement of the mandible, i.e. the lower jaw, after models of teeth acquired from a patient, i.e. a maxillary model and a mandible model (5 in FIG. 1), are attached to the articulator.
The articulator is a device that is mainly used, in particular, for diagnosing diseases that may result from the problem of occlusion and making plans for the treatment of such diseases. The articulator is also used in various fields of dental care, such as implant and straightening.
The conventional articulator uses an approach in which a mandibular fixing part on which the mandible model 5 is mounted and a maxillary fixing part on which the maxillary model is mounted pivot about a shaft in a top-bottom direction. However, the elastic force of a spring, i.e. one of parts which connect the mandibular fixing part and the maxillary fixing part to each other, decreases over time. After a preset amount of time has passed, the coupling force between the mandibular fixing part and the maxillary fixing part is significantly reduced, which is problematic.
In addition, it is impossible to adjust the horizontal turning radius of the maxillary model depending on the arc size (“d” in FIG. 1) of the mandible model 5 which is mounted on the mandibular fixing part. Accordingly, there is a problem in that an error occurs in the process of checking the state of occlusion between the mandible model 5 and the maxillary model.